How Trump’s Mar-a-Lago 'musical ritual' functions as a 'Rosetta Stone that demystifies' his mind: report

Reporters who have covered a lot of Donald Trump rallies can easily describe the former president's taste in music. Elvis Presley's "Suspicious Minds" and the Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want" are frequent choices, and representatives of the late pop singer Laura Branigan's estate have objected to his use of her hit 1982 version of the Italian pop song "Gloria."

The music heard at Trump rallies is often the same music heard at Mar-a-Lago. In a report published on April 4, Axios journalists Jim VandeHei and Jim Allen detail the ways in which Trump's "musical ritual" at Mar-a-Lago playlist echoes the style of his MAGA rallies as well as his interviewing style.

"Former President Trump thinks, talks and acts like no other politician in our lifetime," VandeHei and Allen explain. "There's a Rosetta Stone that demystifies how his mind works, his closest friends tell us: his Mar-a-Lago Spotify playlist. At his oceanside retreat in Palm Beach, Trump controls the surround-sound stereo system on the breezy dining patio with his big iPad and its Spotify list."

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The reporters add, "Regulars jokingly call it the 'Deejay T' performance. Why it matters: To those who know him best, Trump spinning through his golden oldies provides a telling lens into his style on much bigger stages. It captures his obsession with a few familiar hits — controlling the volume, never changing."

Trump's Mar-a-Lago playlist, according to VandeHei and Allen, includes "Suspicious Minds" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want" as well as Lionel Ritchie's "Hello," Johnny Cash's' "Ring of Fire," REM's "Losing My Religion" and Frank Sinatra's recording of "My Way."

The Axios reporters stress that Trump is very hands-on when it comes to the "oldies" played at Mar-a-Lago and featured at his rallies.

"It'll never change," VandeHei and Allen write. "One friend, explaining the Spotify spectacle, said Trump's brain is a series of 'titanium tubes' filled with a specific set of grievances, crowd-pleasing lines, and taunts. The pipes are impenetrable. No matter the topic or tune, you always end up stuck in one. He's the same in interviews: No matter what you ask, Trump often simply opens one of the tubes and riffs."

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Read Axios' full report at this link.